Around 800 families have been displaced as a result of the increase in the level of rainfall associated with the run-off in the Maputo, Umbelúzi and Incomáti river basins over the last 24 hours in the south of the country, reaching a maximum level of 300 cubic millimeters.

This information was provided by the Minister of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources, Carlos Mesquita, during his working visit last Friday, February 10, to the Porto Henrique and Mazambanine drifts, in the district of Boane, Maputo province.

In these places, the rains flooded and affected road traffic and the normal functioning of the infrastructure of the road network, namely: on the Matola-Boane road - flooding of the aqueduct at kilometer 4 and overtopping of the platform at kilometer 9 (Cachoeira area); Impaputo-Goba road - collapse of the bridge over the Kalachane River, in the town of Impaputo; Alto Enchissa-Catuane - overtopping of the Mahau drift; N/C: Crz.R407-Crz.N3 - dragging of the metal bridge over the Umbelúzi river, in the Mafavuka area; N200 road - submergence of the Umpala drift, in the village of Boane and overtopping of the road platform, at kilometer 10 - "Mahubo 10" area; R406: Salamanga/Catuane - flooding of downtown Madubula; R402: Moamba/Sabie - dragging of aqueducts and cutting of the road at km 22; and N-C: Mazambanine-ETA - flooding of the Mazambanine drift.

On the occasion, Mesquita said that teams from the National Institute for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (INGD) had rescued people affected by the floods in the riverside areas of Boane, Namaacha and the Umbeluzi-ETA Water Treatment Plant, using private boats, and that the government was providing them with shelter.

"The events that are taking place here in the south, in particular Maputo, are aggravating the situation downstream, in the case of Mozambique, in particular this region, where we have an average rainfall of around 300 millimeters: what should happen in a year, happens in 24 or 48 hours. That's a lot of water and, as a result, we have this situation we're going through, which is serious," said Mesquita.

In another development, the minister appealed to the entire population living in the Greater Maputo Metropolitan area to make rational use of water, due to the restrictions that will take place over the next few days, to make way for maintenance work to guarantee an adequate supply of drinking water.

"As a result of the floods, the AdRMM company is implementing a set of mitigation measures aimed at ensuring the water supply service by reducing production and distribution levels. The company is monitoring the flow levels of the Umbelúzi river, the impact of which will result in additional measures, to be announced in advance," he said.

"Finally, we strongly recommend that road users in general plan their journeys and transport passengers with extra care during rainy periods and/or periods of poor visibility, especially in flooded areas and when approaching drainage structures and bridges," he concluded.